Sunday, November 30, 2008

a big congratulations to my bro roland who has busted his ass for a couple years straight in an effort to make lakeline watersports a reality. today he & his family (heather, zoe, evie, roland's sister, & heather's dad) cracked a bottle of champagne on their new brick & mortar store.

it's been truly impressive watching roland put this together. it began with roland spending early morning hours for many months before "work" at einstein's reading business books & building a business plan. then shelling out cash to attend his first outdoor retailer show in salt lake city, utah to meet with kayak dealers & begin the buying/distribution process. then selling kayaks from his garage via craigslist. then came the website (very well designed) & then the move to a storage facility. as business continued to grow roland moved shop to a larger storage/office facility. now fast forward to today with the grand opening of lakeline watersports.

my take on the time-line of lakeline watersports doesn't even begin to tap into the reality of the hard work, early mornings, late nights, & the many things that were given up to make today's grand opening a success.

if you know anyone that is even slightly interested in kayaking & fishing i recommend you send them roland's way. i can assure you roland is a good guy who will do everything he can to help them out.

again, big congrats to roland & his family. i wish them all the best & i believe that lakeline watersports will be a success!

an unfinished post (fitting for the topic) i found in my e-mail inbox (often i'll send myself an e-mail reminding me of something to write about or a post that i began).

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since returning from the half ironman in california a few weeks ago i began questioning why i signed up for ironman coeur d' alene which is now only 9-weeks away from today.

i have not once questioned whether i can complete the race. funny for some to imagine that the 140.6 miles that make up an ironman don't scare me. if the race was tomorrow i'd be happy to wake up & do it. the training time i have put in both by myself & with t3 up until this point has prepared me physically for the ironman.

regardless of the physical aspects associated with the ironman there are just so many other things that an athlete must do & in many cases not do to prepare for this type of race. dedicating the time to train both during the week & on the weekends has been the biggest struggle for me. at this stage of training it requires 10+ hours during the week & another 10 hours on the weekends. these 20 hours only include training time too. so many folks don't realize the time that goes into training when you aren't actually training. i'm referring to the time spent washing water bottles, filling & mixing water bottles, packing nutrition, giving up nights out so you can be in bed early & on the flip side up super early in the morning, driving to & from workouts, shopping for workout stuff, equipment tune-ups, planning travel (air, lodging, car) for races, reading about tri training, & because the weather is ever changing you have to have cold & warm weather gear ready to go at all times, & of course there is an abundance of laundry to do. the list goes on & on.

this is why i've been questioning the value of dedicating so much time to these activities. what am i & the people (kristin, family, friends, co-workers) around me getting out of any of this? if it isn't rewarding & it's no longer fun then why continue forward?

it easy to argue that because you signed up you should do it. i had one guy in the gym tell me to "just man-up & do it." isn't part of being a mature adult (man or woman) knowing when it makes more sense to call something to an end? why remain bullish to prove a point or to simply finish something you started? identify something (an ironman in my case) for what it is, waste no more time & energy, & turn your focus toward something that does offer value instead. the opportunity costs to continue my ironman training do not outweigh the other items in my life that do matter right now.

this past week i was still in it. although i was following my own (not t3s) less structured training plan i was still getting the time & miles i needed. this weekend however included a 100+ mile ride for which i knew i'd be better off doing with the team. it's these 5+ hours training rides (which turn into 8+ hour days) that drive me absolutely mad these days. i met up with t3...

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

a colleague e-mailed our entire company the following list of retails stores that are either closing all stores, a specific number of stores, or just some unknown number of stores between oct. '08 & jan. '09.

the e-mail was to serve as a list of retail stores that we should avoid buying gift cards from during the holiday season as gifts.

it is evident from some of the names in this list (see linens & things, the gap, ann taylor, footlocker, lowes, home depot) that things aren't right side up in the economy. luckily everyone i know still has a job & for the most part it sounds like everyone's company is doing well. so kudos to those of us in austin for now at least.

of course you didn't need this list of retail stores to realize something wasn't right in the economy. unless you've been living under a rock you know what i'm talking about. think freddie & fannie, the $700 billion bank bailout, & now the BIG 3 detroit auto manufactures are on their knees looking for $25 billion from the government. lucky for me & kris right now mortgage rates are looking good & we are hoping to lock any day now.

i've digressed to far from where i wanted to go with this one. back on topic.

so my initial thought when i saw the list was wow, the ripple of effect of a down economy is just beginning. my other thought was what little value these stores added to begin with & how i wasn't going to miss any of them.

when i drive between austin & dallas (almost once a month now) it's evident to me that there are way more BIG box stores than we need. hell, it's evident when i drive to & from work each day that there are too many BIG box stores. it drives me nuts to see so many of these stores. the stores take away from the personality of a city/town in my opinion. many will argue that they offer convenience & low costs. convenience is one of the last things i'd suggest that the offer. shopping in my opinion is one of the most inconvenient things we could do with our time. internet shopping, that's convenient. too many folks are running around shopping after work & on their weekends versus spending "real" time with their family & friends, traveling, going to the park, exercising, cooking, enjoying a nice meal, reading, drawing, you get the picture by now. as i walk through most department stores & grocery stores the isles are packed with 5 or more of the same item. take for example laundry detergent. there is an entire isle in the store full of detergents with 15 or more scents, some with bleach added, some powder, some liquid, different sizes, etc. --- give me a break --- i just need laundry detergent. do we really need that many choices? does what type of laundry detergent we buy say something about "who" we are?

maybe i'm a bit of a socialist but i'd be just as happy as i was when i was a kiddo in school. remember when you got a list of what you needed for school? i'd be more than happy if i got my home supplies determined for me based off the square footage of my home, number of rooms, bedrooms, pets, number of people living in the space, etc. just ship me my supplies once a month & let's call it good. does anyone really enjoy shopping for groceries, cleaning supplies, or anything at stores like walmart, target, etc.?

i think what's happening in the retail market right now is more than just some economic disaster. it's a sign of excess being cleaned up. we never needed so many retail stores to begin with. it's urban sprawl to the extreme.

what scares me most right now is what will come of these big & empty stores (warehouses). will our strip malls begin to look like ghost towns? how long will these building that don't have any architectural character sit emtpy? if i had my choice i'd like to see them all torn down & have them replaced with parks & the wild/natural areas they once were.

i could go on & on about this. so many parts of retail frustrate me. maybe i should just say, oh goodie thanks for the e-mail b/c now i won't buy a gift card (what kind of gift is that anyway - tis this season to be shopping versus finding something that will have some meaning to someone) from one of these stores.

while i'm hating on shopping for the holidays for a moment. has anyone else noticed how quick the retailers have moved to hang christmas lights, reefs, etc.? can't we wait for thanksgiving to pass before putting this stuff up? if you are a UT fan you have to wonder if the UT/ATM game was moved this year from the day after thanksgiving (black friday) to thanksgiving day so no one (to include men) have an excuse for not being out shopping.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

i was in dubai for work & as far as a work trip goes it was great. as for a hot travel destination, my recommendation is that you save your money & time. dubai was much like a vegas w/out casinos, it's a non-walking city, unless you were shopping at a local market you weren't getting any type of deal, & the hot restaurants & bars were full of waiting lists & food & drink minimums. i'm tired of wasting my time talking about dubai so i'll wrap things up with a quick list of my take on dubai:

- it's not a walking city- so much construction!- outside of traditional items, nothing is cheap!- the cost of a coffee is the same as a cappuccino or latte - $4 to $5 bucks- traffic is horrific- it's a safe place- unique smells (good & bad)- you can find hummus & french fries on every menu- the amount of construction workers are insane- strict laws- it all started with the crowne plaza dubai- a rail is badly needed; it's under construction- most good restaurants/bars have minimums on what you spend- alcohol is super expensive!- it's all about having the biggest mall, building, island, just fill in the blank.

kristin & i weren't sure what to make of london. we'd talked about going to london in the past but neither of us had any real desire to make those discussions a reality. there were still so many great destinations in this world that we'd yet to enjoy & london simply didn't rank high enough on our list to deserve it's own trip.

my take on london was pretty simple. it was a big city, much like a NY for example with the downside of everything being two to three times more expensive. kristin & i also had a horrific layover in heathrow when returning from prague a couple years back & ever since we've had a bad taste for london.

the good news is that our trip to dubai landed us in london & we decided to give london a go for a couple of days. the outcome was that we both loved it. granted we spent a lot of time in/out of different pubs, but we both really dug the history, the city, & the people.

from the moment we hopped in a cab from paddington station to our hotel we were hit with the common question from the locals, "are you both happy about obama?" regardless of whether we were in a cab, a pub, or a restaurant there was a happy stir about obama just winning the election back home. it made us both feel really good that our UN friends were as happy about obama as we were.

beyond the drinking at the pubs & obama talk we took a ride on london's eye, watched the changing of the guard at buckingham palace, experienced the typical dark & rainy weather london offers, we enjoyed tea & coffee at some local eateries, we walked through both st. james & hyde park, & we saw big ben which reminded us that we needed to get out of town & catch our flights to dubai.

in the future we'd both like to use london as a transition point for a couple of days before reaching our final european destination. i'm thinking greece, ireland, &/or istanbul will be where we travel next in europe. before europe we owe a visit to south america (chile, peru, brazil, &/or argentina).

Sunday, November 16, 2008

personal blogging has slowed for reasons you would imagine - time is precious & blogging simply doesn't rank. even though i'm not blogging regularly i often think of all the interesting & fun topics that i would like to write about. as a result i found myself creating a list of topics (beginning feb '08 - oct. '08) that i hoped i would one day return to write about. the list of topics has grown to almost 100 & knowing that it will continue to grow further & cause me even more frustration i decided to share my "to blog about" list with you in a single blog post. the majority of these thoughts are just one liners on the topic & a quick reference to where the thought originated from, while afew are almost finished posts.

anyhow, i'm happy to wipe my posting plate clean (minus the two pending about our london/dubai/chicago trip we just returned home from) & i hope you find a little humor & interesting points within my list.

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pick your battles (reference to something mitchell pointed out to me related to trash in the office)

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show attire – jeans & sport coat versus the traditional business suit (reference to what folks wear at tech conferences (mobilize08 for example) & why i prefer this style of dress)

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IVRs versus scripted customer service agents (reference to how an IVR can actually provide a better customer experience than CS agents who just read through a scripted list & have no personality)

i had a fun conversation with some friends this past friday while eating lunch at the clay pit. the conversation was about cereal & how 3 out of the 4 of us at the table saw cereal as a staple in our diet.

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apartment raised dogs (reference to the behaviors of dogs that live in apartments & how it's correlated to the demographic of folks living in apartments)

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3rd story apartment move-ins (reference to the inconveniences of apartment stairs)

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lucky to be raking leaves (reference to brent describing what it means to him to be thankful)

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title: 7 years later

these past 7 years with you have taught me…

year 1 – what i thought was fun really wasn’t healthy for the long term

year 2 – learning to share

year 3 – respect

year 4 – not to take each other for granted & to communicate

year 5 – how

year 6 – the importance of traveling the world together

year 7 – together we can control our destiny & that you are my biggest fan & supporter

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stumbling on happiness (reference to how happiness can appear when you least expect it)

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title: first time in salt lake city

all & all i wasn't to impressed with salt lake city, utah. the focus of the trip of course wasn't to "enjoy" the city, rather to learn as much as i could about the outdoor retail business. as far as that effort is concerned the trip was a huge success.

for the past couple of years roland has attended the outdoor retailer show & i had remarked that it sounded like a good time. roland knowing that i would enjoy the vibe of such a show, all the free health bar swag (probably too much), & the opportunity to feed the entrepreneur spirit within meinvited me along this year.

the show was great & really opened my eyes to the business of being a retailer. regardless of industry, retailers are offered goods at a minimum of 35% less than the product will retail for. it seems the smaller the product, the higher the profit margin. along those same terms, the more you buy the greater the discount. the next time i purchase cliff bars for example i will try & block out the fact that the place I am buying them from most likely paid $0.35 to $0.45 cents for them.

of course the retailer needs to make profit b/c he/she has to pay to keep the lights on, pay salaries, pay for insurance, pay rent, etc. i know running a retail shop isn't a sure fire plan to make it rich & like anything else there are risks involved. if it was so easy to prosper in this business we would all be doing it.

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if at first you don’t succeed(reference to a story that aired on CBS sunday morning 2008/08/03)

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how low does ford's stock have to go before they'll see the light (reference to an article in the WSJ titled, "finally, ford sees the light"

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title: are imported cars just better?

i don't watch a lot of nascar (anymore). as of today, july 24th 2008 the nascar leader board according to car manufacturer is as follows:

pointswins

toyota1248

chevrolet1054

ford993

dodge904

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never know who you are going to touch (reference to the leukemia & lymphoma society & someone i met at the gym who had survived leukemia)

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but i tried didn’t i, GD. at least i did that. (reference to a quote i read somewhere about trying)

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title: surprise food find in ORD

just as i begin to think there is no hope for finding anything descent to eat in airports i find myself enjoying a wonderfully prepared meal in chicago’s ohare airport.

i can’t even complain about the price. i think $16 bucks (plus tax & tip) for a nice piece of salmon, 5 nice sized pieces of broccoli, & 5 asparaguses that are cooked very well is reasonable. maybe, i’m just becoming immune to the prices of food when travelling… last week i was charged $19 bucks at the hotel breakfast buffet for which i had a bowl of cereal, fruit, & coffee. just two days ago i paid $14 dollars for a turkey bagel sandwich with no cheese!

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starbucks says sorry in the right way (reference to starbucks apologizing for loosing gift card balances for a day & then sending every card holder a free bag of espresso beans)

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title: hotel gyms

hotel gyms are not the best place to workout, but they at least provide you a free way of getting free water & fruit (apples) while on the road.

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i didn’t know that tucson stood for “the lack of possessing color & life” (reference to the lack of color i saw while in tuscon in april of this year)

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free espresso & apple & bread just by being friendly (reference to a free treat a barista at starbucks gave me just for being friendly)

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starbucking (reference to a movie about a dude who attempted to visit every SB in the world)

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dear starbucks, (reference to a letter i began to write (obviously didn't get to far) to starbucks about them not offering plain soy milk & their new & crappy ice drink tops that crush the straws)

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a casa de luz in san francisco (reference to ananda fuara)

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what you can do with the iPhone (reference to all the things i was able to accomplish with my iPhone in an hour)

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siphon coffee at the blue bottle (reference to my love for the siphon coffee made at the blue bottle coffee company in san francisco)

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only three timewarner women technicians (reference to a conversation i had with a super friendly CS agent at TWC)

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schlotzsky’s 5K run w/ the family (reference to my race experience with my family to include my mom who just ran her first 5K the week prior)

yesterday, april 5th 2008 my mom (sandra) kicked some butt! she ran the seaton soles 5K & took 2nd place in her age group. after my folks came down to watch kristin & i run the 3M 1/2 marathon in january of this year my mom decided she wanted to start running.

after returning home (garland) from austin, she immediately bought a real pair of running shoes & signed up with run on, a local running group in plano. she began meeting with the group 3 times a week & was loving every minute of it. my mom has always maintained a very strict diet (she's the reason why i don't eat sweets) & maintained a love for...

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kristin’s bday (reference to the good times i enjoyed with kristin on her 28th bday)

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title: value of your purchases

casa breakfast vs. a traditional café latte or a $2 smoothie or a $1 coffee at lift.

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starbucks as a business (reference to how evaluating starbucks provides a plethora of business material)

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30% more time to first-borns (reference to an article that suggested that parents give 30% more time to first-borns than there other children)

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title: the B’s of interviewing

a fellow t3er posted a question to the t3 message board the other day on a topic unrelated to triathlon training. he has a friend who is going to interview for a personal trainer position at pure austin (a locally owned gym here in austin – kristin & i workout at pure) & she was asking about what the appropriate dress attire for such a position warranted.

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male synchronized swimmer in the olympics (reference to a story about a male synchronized swimmer who is on a women's only team)

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spin on obama following race speech courtesy of FOX news (reference to just how bad FOX news can be)

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title: just living in a city isn’t enough

moving back into austin proper was the best move for kristin & i yet. each day of the week is treated differently all due to our new location. while owning a big brand new home in round rock had its perks from time-to-time it did not satisfy our active, healthy, & adventurous life styles.

kristin now works downtown for starters & can drive to work & home in less than 10 minutes each way. we can both make it to the lake in less than 10 minutes. we’ve discovered new restaurants all around us. we are getting to know the neighbors. we were able to get a dog because it’s now possible to swing home during the day to let him out. we can bike run from our house, running in this area is great too. we can walk to coffee shops, restaurants, & bars. our grocery shopping is now pleasurable versus painful.

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nokia food (reference to the food we had while visiting with nokia earlier this year in NY)

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nokia offices (reference to impressive nokia officies in NY)

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dd1 (reference to something that i don't even remember anymore)

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why is resting so hard? (reference to it being difficult for me to rest)

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title: ironman training time – i want my hour back!

today turned out to be a much longer than expected training day. i woke at 5:15AM & did not return home from training until 5:30PM...

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military rank pay vs. the corporate system (reference to the pros & cons of the corporate structure following the military structure for pay & rank)

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floating plastic island (reference to the debri/trash in the ocean that has accumulated to form a small island.

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postum (reference to the coffee substitute that is no longer sold in the states)

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malachi 3:10 (reference to this chapter/passage in the bible)

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title: addicted to being honest…

i was just faced w/ having to present a very bad review to one of my employees (who is also one of my best friends) & it turned out to be one of the most liberating experiences of my life. i was quite nervous & anxious about this review & it turned out to be my high of the day. how good it feels to be honest & open w/ people. my employee (i think of him as a friend first) responded so well & actually was very appreciative of the feedback. it was amazing how it helped not only our professional, but personal relationship too. i recently read an article in the new york post…

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austin makes you happy (reference to how austin really does rock)

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new gravel dropped at the trail (reference to the simple things that make me happy)

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6AM concert in austin? (reference to a concert that i noticed during an early morning run w/ ed)

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the netflix game (reference to the game kristin & play with watching & returning DVDs to netflix)

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delorean’s in humble texas (reference to a company in humble, TX that restores deloreans)

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on my way home from dallas wednesday i passed this restaurant in temple called BJ’s brewhouse (reference to the name of this place, i don't buy the answer they gave me for naming this place BJ's)

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don’t judge a person by looks alone (reference to a person i met on a plane)

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vita spelt wins! (reference to my own pasta taste/health off)

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title: the best pinot noir to date

last night kristin & i enjoyed the best pinot noir to date. it was a bottle of 2003...

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office fax machines (reference to being the only guy in the office that knows how to work it)

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title: athlete hangout

i had my first visit to performance wellness this past friday. my left cheek (not on my face) was giving me grief. the pain/stiffness had become...

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president maybe? (reference to the likelihood that obama will win the election)

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SOCO on a saturday night (reference night out with eduardo/jennifer & eryn/alex)

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own your city (reference to running early in the morning)

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working(out) from the gym (reference to how i brought my work with me to the gym)

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jesus on our tree (reference to kristin seeing jesus's face on the trunk of our tree in rosedale)

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single ply= BIG mistake (reference to the trouble i was in for brining home single ply TP)

carbotarian or vegetarian (reference to how i see most vegetarians as people who eat a lot of carbs, cheese, & sugar & not a lot of veggies)

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interesting new years resolution – don’t knock yourself (reference to something angela gave up in 2008)

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grub after a swim (reference to how hungry you are after a long & hard morning swim)

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title: healthy vegetarian indian curry dish

it’s quickly becoming a favorite for us. at least once every two weeks we have this super healthy vegetarian indian curry dish. it’s super spicy (just the way we like it!) & also very good for you (considering it’s curry & most curry dishes are super fatty).

we all know coconut milk can be heavy, yet it is super healthy for you too so what we do is buy the lite version so it isn’t as "bad" for you. we also use brown basamati rice which helps add to the nutritional value (& fiber). the tofu rocks because it just absorbs all those wonderful indian spices & because it is so high in protein i love the stuff. we usually make a large pot so we each have enough for one dinner & then one left over lunch for me.

ingredients that go into this dish:

- 2 whole packages of firm tofu

- 1 cup of brown basamati rice

- ½ a can of lite coconut milk

- 1 cup of fat free vanilla yogurt

- 1 – 2 chopped up mangos

- & as much indian spice as you like!

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roasted nuts (reference to a discussion i had with brent about nuts loosing their nutritional values during the roasting process)

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ironman nutrition - calories, calories, & more calories! (reference to the amount of food it takes to fill an ironman)

italian dinner at home (reference to an amazing italian dinner we made at home)

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title: me & my cell phones

as far as electronic devices, cell phones are turning into...

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history of the name kirk (reference to tracing back my family name)

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title: constructive criticism leads to free stuff

in the past month i’ve been pleasantly surprised by the response i’ve received from a few business for which i’ve given them some constructive criticism on my experience working with them.

it started first with california pizza kitchen i met my friend amber there for lunch a couple of months ago. we both ordered pizza with honey wheat crust. when our pizzas arrived neither of them had honey wheat crust on them. so the waitress offered to leave us with these non-honey wheat crust pizzas free of charge & would make us two honey wheat crusts as we ordered to go. i wasn’t feeling much like eating a pizza i didn’t want so the waitress then brought us two cups of complimentary soups & still boxed up the plain crust pizzas to go. my friend amber took them home. this isn’t the whole story though… about two weeks later i receive a card in the mail from cpk apologizing for their service & in the card was a gift card for a free pizza. so i sat down for two pizzas & ending up getting 5 pizzas (3 of them free) & 2 free bowls of soup just because a cook could read the waiter’s order. talk about a company going above & beyond for their customer.

similar story to the previous… kristin & i went to fago de chao which just opened here in austin for dinner. the food was great (assuming you like lots of meat), the décor of the restaurant was pleasing, & the service was perfect. the only flaw was the valet service for which fago de chao out sources. after dinner we waited close to 30 minutes for our car. see the above picture of kristin & many other chilly austinites waiting outside for their car. i even asked the valet if i could just have the keys & i’d get the car myself. i was told that you need a special parking pass to exit the parking garage & that i just needed to wait. the next morning i sent a nice e-mail to fago de chao explaining that everything was great minus their valet service & that they’ll need to get that piece of their operation working if they want happy clients. first thing monday morning i received a phone call from a representative of fago de chao explaining that they appreciated the feedback, that they’ve already begun working with their valet service to correct things, & that they take full responsibility for what happened. to close, they sent me a free lunch for two.

the last story, which just happened today & is the reason why i thought to write this entry, is a call i got from a representative at ESI international (www.esi-intl.com)...

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title: public bathrooms, office refrigerators, & craigslist

what do public bathrooms, office refrigerators, & craigslist have in common? they are places that we can *all* use & for which no one takes responsibility for taking care of. ever wonder why cities have so few public bathrooms, parks, etc… it’s because folks abuse them & they cost the city to much to keep them clean.

i gave up on using the office refrigerator over a year ago. i purchased a small fridge for my office because i couldn’t stand the mess of the office refrigerator. just last week, i told the guys in the office that everything in the fridge was being tossed & that if it got like this again we’d get rid of the refrigerator altogether. upon rob cleaning out the fridge for everyone the photo connected to this post is of lunch meat that was over 7 months old, a container full of lasagna & a PB&J sandwich with more bacteria growing on them than what you’d find in a typical science laboratory.

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austin gazelles (reference to what a great group of runners make up this group)

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plumbing story (reference to the benefits of renting vs. owning when things such as a leaky kitchen sink at rosedale turned into a $1,600 problem)

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city top tens (reference of top10 "things" a city has to offer)

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walking/driving to starbucks in the domain (reference to how walking to the domain is much easier & almost as fast as driving to the domain from our offices)

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starbucks vs. dunken donuts (reference to no only the business differences, but the demographics of who goes where)